11-R444

2011 -- S 1027

Enacted 07/15/11

J O I N T R E S O L U T I O N

RECOGNIZING BLOCK ISLAND FOUNDER'S DAY ON JUNE 18, 2011,

SEMISEPTCENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY OF SETTLEMENT

Introduced By: Senator V. Susan Sosnowski

Date Introduced: June 09, 2011

     WHEREAS, The first founders to establish a community on Block Island were

Narragansett Native Americans, who inhabited the island for centuries and called it “Manisses”;

and

     WHEREAS, In 1524 A.D., explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano, in service to the French

crown, sighted Block Island, and although they did not land, they named the island “Claudia,”

after the mother of King Francis I; and

     WHEREAS, In 1614, Dutch explorer Adriaen Block set foot on the island and so loved

its beauty and charm that he named it Adriaen’s Eyelandt. He placed it on navigational charts,

which later recognized it as Block Island; and

     WHEREAS, In 1660, Block Island was sold by the Massachusetts Bay Colony to a

company of sixteen men, most of whom constituted its first colonial settlers; and

     WHEREAS, Block Island was surveyed and lotted out proportionally unto the purchasers

by their surveyor in 1661; and

     WHEREAS, These early settlers on Block Island cleared the land and established thereon

a community of farmers and fishermen; and

     WHEREAS, In 1672, Block Island received its town charter from the Rhode Island

General Assembly and was incorporated by the Colony of Rhode Island as “New Shoreham,

otherwise Block Island”; and

     WHEREAS, The tiny community took hold with stubborn independence and prospered

despite wars, taxation, piracy, and invasion. In 1774, it declared its independence from the crown

by repudiating British duties on tea; and

     WHEREAS, Through the ensuing centuries, Block Island remained a ruggedly

independent yet close-knit community while still fully partaking in global events; and

     WHEREAS, The people of Block Island remain unabashedly proud of their Island and

their community. They strive to strike a balance among conservation of land, commercial and

residential development, and affordable living opportunities in today’s economy; and

     WHEREAS, This year, the current Block Island community celebrates the importance

and rich heritage of all who have come before to establish communities on, and “discover” Block

Island; now, therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this General Assembly of the State of Rhode Island and Providence

Plantations hereby recognizes that this smallest town in Rhode Island is large of heart, striking in

beauty, and great in importance; and be it further

     RESOLVED, That this General Assembly therefore extends hearty congratulations to

“New Shoreham, otherwise Block Island” on the occasion of its Founder’s Day, on June 18th in

this year of 2011, and celebrated as Block Island’s semiseptcentennial, or 350th, anniversary year;

and be it further

     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and he hereby is authorized and directed to

transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to Frances Migliaccio, Co-Chair of the Block

Island Semiseptcentennial Committee. 

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LC02819

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